Winter Boots 2011

This post is long overdue, considering we are already past Thanksgiving here in the States.  Under normal weather conditions, the air is hovering near freezing and the ground is hardening.  Cold rain falls, sometime turning into ice and sleet.  You could wake up to snow on any given day.  But this year has been unusually warm, at least out here in mid-Atlantic.  Aside from one freak snow storm, this fall has been mild and forgiving.  But that doesn’t mean the next few months won’t be nasty, wet and cold.  Of course, none of this applies to my friends living in colder climes.  You guys have to deal with way more shitty weather than us.  So this one is for all yall.

Being an inhabitant of a large city (without access to a personal automobile), one is keenly aware of daily weather conditions.  An unforeseen rain storm can leave you drenched, an unexpected cold front will leave you shivering.  Needless to say, we city dwellers, who actually have to walk and be exposed to the elements, are hypersensitive to the needs of our feet.  When the winter comes, we would like to keep them warm and dry.  As a child of the suburbs, I never bought or wore boots.  I somehow got away with wearing sneakers always.  Maybe that’s because I was a dense child, but when you have a car that can take you right to where you need to go, you don’t have to worry about being exposed for prolonged periods of time.

What I’m trying to get at is that a solid, warm, water-resistant (and of course stylish) boot is essential to any person’s shoe collection.  For your average person, getting a pair is as easy as going to your local sporting good store, or clicking a few times on Zappos.  For us, who are trying to abstain from leather and other animal products, this proves a more difficult task.  Now mind you, when I say difficult I don’t mean impossible, or even frustrating.  No, I mean difficult like there are so many great looking leather boots that it’s hard to resist buying a pair!

But do not fear.  Before you I present several stylish and functional alternatives to the leather boot paradigm.  Some are made by known vegan brands.  The others are not in that group but offer up alternative materials in common molds which would commonly use leather.

Click to see the shoes, I mean boots!


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Es Fall 2011 Vegan Kicks

I guess I’m a little late reporting this but hey at least I’m doing it.  If you’ve been here at all before you can tell right away I’m not one of those “up to the minute” type bloggers.  Oftentimes I am way behind in the game.

Anyway, here’s some nice Es kicks to whet your appetite for a bit.  Emerica has some too but I’m not really feeling them.  Check out the Edgar in Maroon , Ecosse in Dark Grey, Square One in Navy Gold, and the Square Two Fusion Joe Brook in Black/White/Silver.

Source: Es

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Urban Outfitters Chambray Sneaker

Sorry I’ve been off my game lately.  For some reason I haven’t been coming across anything that’s really caught my eye.  It seems like all the great shoes coming out are made out of leather.  Pretty disappointing.

While this Urban Outfitters Chambray Sneaker isn’t anything new or particularly interesting, I thought I’d share it with you guys just because it’s pretty affordable and versatile plimsoll.  Plus it’s not plain old canvas, so you get a little bit of variety out of the material, at least.

Available at Urban Outfitters in gray, blue, and red (pink?)

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Supra Skytop Canvas Tuf Blue & Red (NOT VEGAN)

Update 11/11/11: Sorry everyone, I didn’t realize these contained leather.  I actually recall that in the past I saw that the “Tuf” Supra shoes were leather.  But I forgot.  Sorry guys.  And thanks guys for your comments calling me out on it.  Appreciate your help.

-Henry

I’ve never been a huge fan of the Supra Skytop, but these are pretty clean.  I see the appeal, but I wouldn’t rock them all the time.  Here’s a bold solid color release from your favorite skater/beatmaker/delinquent Chad Muska.  Holler at em Chad.

Source: Sneaker Freaker

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Vans Era and Half Cab Denim

I feel a strong sense of deja vu as I write about this new pack – Vans Era and Half Cab in blue and black denim.  I just hear this voice in the back of my head that they’ve done this before.  Oh well.  If Vans is not original, at least the shoes look good.  At least to me, anyway.  If you don’t already have some denim sneaks in your collection, here’s your chance.  I get the sense that Era is more frequently updated with different colors and materials, while the Half Cabs, not as much.  Then again, the Half Cab’s popularity with nostalgic skater dudes such as myself is undeniable.  Pick some up now and keep them on ice, who knows when they’ll be available in this style again.

NOTE: THE ERA IN BLACK DENIM APPEARS TO HAVE A SUEDE HEEL.

Available at Nice Kicks.

Click down for more pics


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The Sneaker Coloring Book

I saw this book in a random store the other day and I immediately thought how fantastic it would be to be able to not only customize each color of a sneaker, but pick the materials too!  Oh, what wonderful vegan combinations we could come up with: pleather, chambray, denim, or plain old canvas.  Wouldn’t that be sooo nice…


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Nike SB Bruin Black Canvas

Man, sorry all for being so delinquent lately.  I just relocated back to New York City!  Yes yessss.  I’m happy to be back.  But moving is such a pain in the ass – taking apart all the material things in your life and re-assembling it is such a chore.  I need to get rid of some stuff, seriously.  And being back in the city, there is just so much more going on!  This is a plus/minus.  One of the minuses is that you can get sidetracked from your routine, like for example, blogging.

But enough of my personal crap.  Spotted by Tall Mike – these fresh Nike SB Bruins.  In all black canvas, with gum sole, and camo inner.  Pretty sweet combo.  Unfortunately, Premier is selling these only in stores.  Post a link if you see any of these babies online!


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Onitsuka Tiger Tabigutsu CV

Many of you are huge fans of the Onitsuka Tiger shoes by Asics, and for good reason.  We’ve posted on here a couple of times about the various models that are vegan.  Here’s another – the Tabigutsu CV.  It’s a slight departure from something like the California 78.  This is a basic, mono-colored slip-on, but with a little bit of an overlapping pattern with the fabric.  It’s no substitute for a Vans slip-on, but for someone looking for something very basic, this is a good option.

Available in Charcoaland Faded Denim at Zappos for $49.50.


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Good Guys Aponi

Word on the street was that Moo Shoes was starting to stock Good Guys, and now some of them are here! Unfortunately, selection is quite limited, so I’ll just start off with the Aponi.  Not sure what there is to say other than that they are dope.  It’s a simple oxford, but unlike a lot of vegan shoes that try to do this, they actually look… good.  Really good.  The material is faux suede, and so far you can get these in beige (gray) and brandy (brown).

Click down for more pics.  Available at Moo Shoes for $175.


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Palladium Canvas (Fall 2011)

Here in the tri-state area, the weather has abruptly gone cold, signaling the end of summer :(   With that I have cold weather clothes on the brain.  Here are some dope new (colors) Palladium boots in canvas.  These rugged, vintage looking boots are constructed of a one-piece rubber outsole and stonewashed canvas upper.

The Baggy is the high boot with the fold down collar.  Available in black and mustard.

The Pampa Hi is largely similar, sans the fold down tongue and collar.  Available in grey and khaki.

Get these at Premier.

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